Russia's new leader

Medvedev sworn in as president, but Putin won't be far away

MOSCOW — Dmitry Medvedev, a corporate lawyer tapped and groomed for the Kremlin by Vladimir Putin, was sworn in as president Wednesday under the watchful gaze of his mentor and predecessor.

As soon as the ceremony was over, just as they had planned for months, Medvedev nominated Putin for prime minister.

With the two men apparently poised to rule in tandem, Russians were left waiting with a mix of anxiety and curiosity for hints of who's really in charge: Medvedev, 42, who holds the highest job in the land, or Putin, the former KGB officer and wily politician who seems determined to keep a grip on power.

"Now it is extremely important that we together continue the course of the country, which has already justified itself," Putin told 2,000 dignitaries, referring to his years in office as a "breakthrough to new life" for Russia.

He also hinted that he regards his policies and plans as shaping Russia for decades to come, noting: "We are already formulating goals not for one or two months, but for 20 and 30 years ahead."

Medvedev, speaking after his longtime boss, talked of the need for rule of law and decried the corruption that has plagued Russia since the fall of the Soviet Union - and continued to rage throughout Putin's eight-year presidency.

"We ought to achieve a genuine respect for law, to overcome the legal nihilism which seriously hampers with modern development," he said.

By midafternoon, Medvedev had sent a letter to the State Duma, the lower house of parliament, nominating Putin as prime minister, then settled in to issue decrees on housing for World War II veterans and use of public lands.

The Duma is scheduled to debate Putin's nomination today, but the discussion is a formality. Putin has nearly finished choosing the members of the new government, the Interfax news agency reported.

Nobody can say for sure whether this new president is simply a fresh face to front the same ruling constellation of Putin and the power brokers who shored him up, or whether Medvedev might come into his own as a Russian leader.

"I don't even think they themselves understand how this will work," said Lilia Shevtsova, a senior associate at the Carnegie Moscow Center. "It's quite an unusual scenario."

Medvedev takes over a country saddled with trouble despite its natural resources and wealth. Squalid living standards and poverty remain; the population is shrinking; international tensions are high with the West as well as with former Soviet republics such as Georgia and Ukraine. The economy depends heavily on oil prices, and inflation is rising.

The prospect of a power struggle adds further uncertainty. The coming months will pit Putin's political power against the overwhelming authority granted to Medvedev by Russia's constitution. According to law, Medvedev is now in charge of foreign and domestic policy, as well as the military and security.

Still, Putin speaks of himself in epic terms and recently referred to the prime minister's post as the highest executive authority. He has agreed to head the ruling United Russia party, which controls the State Duma by a vast majority and has emerged as the de facto ruling party.

"The president is supposed to be No. 1," said Sergei Robov, director of Moscow's USA and Canada Institute. "But people don't believe that Mr. Putin can be No. 2. So we'll have to wait and see how it works."